Scottish Clan Chief Ninian Brodie Dies

Ninian Brodie, the Scottish chief who split his aristocratic clan when he sold their castle to a conservation group, has died. He was 90.

Brodie died March 3 at a nursing home in Elgin, Scotland, said Fiona Dingwall, property manager at Brodie Castle, which is now owned by the National Trust.

He was chief of clan Brodie and 25th laird, a Scottish dignitary title, descended from a Scottish nobleman who was granted lands in the Elgin area by King Malcolm IV in the 12th century.

Born in Brodie Castle near Inverness in eastern Scotland, Brodie inherited the title after his two older brothers died. Brodie's formal Scottish title was Brodie of that Ilk.

The Brodie family _ whose motto was "Unite'" _ lived at Brodie for almost eight centuries until the 25th laird sold the crumbling castle and more than 170 acres in 1978 to the National Trust for Scotland for $208,000. He retained a small apartment on the estate.

Last year three of his grandchildren, claiming the property was theirs, unsuccessfully petitioned the Scottish courts to have the sale overturned.

Educated at the prestigious Eton College and later at the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art, Brodie worked for Scotland's Perth Repertory Theatre. In 1939, he married the Welsh actress Helena Budgeon.

After World War II, Brodie, who served in the Royal Artillery, returned home to help his recently widowed mother run the estate until her death.

Brodie, who continued acting, was known locally for reciting risque limericks and breeding daffodils, as his father had.

Worried that he lacked the resources to keep the dilapidated castle open to the public, he decided to sell it. After restoration, the castle reopened in 1980.

Brodie is survived by his son Alastair, who becomes the 26th clan chief, and his daughter Juliet. Funeral details were not immediately available.